The science

The January 2010 freeze cut tagged snook survival by over 90 percent on SW Florida barrier islands.

Water fell from about 18 C to 12 C within 5 days in January 2010 and stayed below 12 C to 16 January; at least 10 days below the 12.5 C snook lethal level. Apparent survival of marked snook fell 96-97 percent; 2010 abundance was 76 and 42 percent below 2008 and 2009.

SW Florida Gulf barrier islands · field · full text read

A water temperature anomaly typically fades over about two to three weeks, faster in summer.

From 37 years of daily satellite SST, median short-term anomaly persistence (lag where a fitted exponential falls to correlation 0.6, about 61 percent of e-folding time) was 11 to 14 days over 71 to 79 percent of the ocean: 11 days for June starts, 14 for March. Persistence is shorter in summer and in eddy-rich regions.

Global ocean (satellite, 1981-2018) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Adding a model's forecast anomaly to the observed normal removes model bias and gave useful skill about 2 months out.

Forecast SST anomalies were formed by subtracting the model's own 1982-2010 climatology for the same start date and lead, then added to the observed climatology to get absolute temperatures for a tag-based tuna habitat model. Expected useful habitat forecast skill was up to 2 months; daily-updated forecasts were adopted by the purse-seine industry.

Great Australian Bight (out of region) (outside South Florida) · model · full text read

Panhandle kingfish catch rates tended to drop after very cold winters and rise after warm ones.

Panama City charter logs 1970-1979 (22,349 fish, 60.8% king mackerel). Catch per hour was 3.8 in 1975 after a warm winter, but 1.4 in 1977 and 1.3 in 1978 after winters averaging 8.6 and 8.9 C air temperature. Catches peaked August-September. Authors called the data too few to be conclusive; air temperature proxy.

Florida Panhandle (Panama City) · field · full text read

Tiger sharks favor water near 27-28 C, and in warm years they push farther north and arrive earlier.

47 SPOT-tracked sharks 2010-2019 plus 8,764 captures 1980-2018. Presence peaked at SST 27-28 C; captures were highest at 22-28 C. Each 1 C warm anomaly moved arrival north of 36N about 14 days earlier. High-catch areas shifted 300-440 km poleward over decades. Mostly females tagged off Florida and the Bahamas.

SE Florida; western North Atlantic · field · full text read

NOAA's pass mark for a coastal forecast model is 90 percent of temperature errors within 3 C.

NOS standards require 90 percent of errors within an acceptable error X and under 1 percent beyond 2X. X is 15 cm for water level, 26 cm/s current speed, 3.0 C water temperature and 3.5 psu salinity, as used for TBOFS and NGOFS2; temperature and salinity X derive from ship draft density error. Ideal assessment uses 365 days.

U.S. coastal (NOAA standard); Tampa Bay and northern Gulf OFS · agency · agency document

Adult lemon sharks gather off southeast Florida each winter when water drops below about 24 C, then disperse north.

83 adult lemon sharks tracked 2007-2011: 97.5% of detections fell in a December-April residency when local water stayed below about 24 C. Water temperature was the strongest predictor; moon phase had no effect. Highest residence was at artificial reefs on the 20-30 m reef line. In summer sharks ranged north to Cape Hatteras.

SE Florida · field · full text read

Mahi, wahoo and yellowfin patches match surface temperature patches, but swordfish patches match temperature at 200 m.

U.S. Gulf longline logbooks (1987-2005, about 3,389 sets per year) gave average patch scales of 54.9 km for dolphinfish, 54.3 km wahoo, 92.2 km yellowfin and 133.3 km swordfish. SST patches averaged 72.4 km and 200 m temperature 143.3 km. Surface species tracked the SST scale; swordfish tracked the 200 m scale. Longline gear only.

Gulf of Mexico (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Florida pompano die when water drops to about 10 to 12 C, and grow best at 25 to 30 C.

Aquaculture species profile: mortalities occur at 10-12 C and with sudden large temperature changes; juveniles grow best at 25-30 C and have thrived up to 34 C. Juveniles and adults tolerate 0-50 ppt salinity and dissolved oxygen of 4 mg/L or more.

Florida (Mote Marine Lab culture profile) · agency · agency document

Blacktips here tracked shallow seagrass and water above 31 C; salinity and oxygen were not top drivers.

BRT models of 245 blacktips (2013-2018): depth 54.4 percent, temperature 13.4 percent and bottom type 8.2 percent were top predictors; preferred under 4 m, over 31 C, seagrass. Salinity (about 24-36 PSU) and DO (4.6-8.0 mg/L) were tested but not among top three.

West-central Florida (Pinellas), just north of box · model · full text read

The 2010 freeze hit snook, tarpon and ladyfish hardest in Everglades waters; redfish survived better.

NPS reported in January 2010 that snook, tarpon, ladyfish, catfish, pinfish and mojarra were hardest hit across western rivers, Whitewater Bay and Florida Bay; thousands of large dead snook, tarpon and goliath grouper at Flamingo. Red drum and black drum reportedly fared better. No water temperatures given.

Everglades National Park, Florida Bay, Flamingo · agency · agency document

White marlin catch rates climb as surface water warms to about 25 C, then level off.

Mexican observer data, 79,642 longline sets 1993-2023, white marlin in 18% of sets. Delta GAMM: catch rose with SST to around 25 C then flattened, was higher late in the year and toward the open central Gulf. Squid and octopus bait beat fish bait. Models explained only 11.2-12.5% of variation.

southwestern Gulf of Mexico, Mexican waters (out of region) (outside South Florida) · agency · agency document

Juvenile lemon sharks hug Cape Canaveral beaches in winter, flee south when water drops near 12 C, and head north as spring warms.

54 tagged juveniles (2008-2011, 300 km array) wintered in the Canaveral surf zone, 82% of detections nearshore; over 70% were at 15-20 C. In the January 2010 cold event water fell to 11 C and all left, moving 62-191 km south to water 3-6 C warmer. Northward spring passage ran late February to early May.

east-central Florida (Cape Canaveral to Palm Beach) · field · full text read

In January 2010 Sanibel's Tarpon Bay lost ladyfish, tarpon, mullet and gag to cold.

SCCF monitoring summary of the January 2010 event: record-low water temperatures since its sensors began in 2007; fish kill species in Tarpon Bay included ladyfish, tarpon, pinfish, filefish, mojarra, gag, mullet and catfish; snook mortality statewide, with abundance at least 49 percent below pre-event for four years.

Sanibel, Tarpon Bay, SW Florida · field · agency document

In Florida Bay, tagged seatrout spent more time where water stayed below 30 C, and fed most around dawn.

Preliminary FIU telemetry (75 tagged seatrout, 29 receivers, 16 temperature loggers) in Rankin Basin: fish spent more time in areas below 30 C; dawn (about 6-7 AM) appeared to be peak feeding. Near 30 C in the dry and early wet season, higher metabolic cost may limit feeding. Results unpublished at time of report.

Rankin Basin, north-central Florida Bay · agency · agency document

Around reefs, amberjack hold in the warm mixed layer; offshore they dive deep but body temperature limits how long they stay down.

Archival and satellite tags on 12 amberjack (68-101 cm FL, 1,331 tag-days). Near reefs fish stayed mostly in 20-22 C mixed water with short dives; offshore they made daily dives to 150-250 m. Body temperature lagged water temperature and rarely fell below 16 C; 95% of dives lasted under 21 minutes. Taiwan, not Florida.

Taiwan, East China Sea (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

After a severe Florida cold kill, gray snapper growth stalled for a year then ran faster, and snook switched sex younger.

Otolith increments from fishery-caught gray snapper showed growth fell 46% the year after a severe cold event versus a pre-event control, then ran 16-17% above control for several years. In a northern estuary where snook fell over 50%, snook became female younger and smaller. Interpreted as compensatory recovery; correlative design.

Florida (statewide estuaries and fisheries) · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

Short sensor gaps can be filled by interpolation, but not across a cold front.

For a 2012-2022 air and water temperature dataset, gaps up to 3 h (air) and 5 h (water) were linearly interpolated only when values on each side differed by under 1.5 C; longer gaps used nearby stations. Test gaps of 6 to 168 h gave water temperature MAE 0.88 C; final data had under 2 percent gaps.

Upper Laguna Madre, Texas (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Gray snapper use inland mangroves in the dry season and shift to Keys mangroves in the wet season.

Visual surveys over more than 500 km of mangrove shoreline (2000-2001): mean salinity rises and variability falls toward Keys inlets. Gray snapper selected inland mainland mangroves in the dry season (December-February) and Keys shorelines in the wet season (June-August); other snappers and grunts favored Keys mangroves year round.

Biscayne Bay to NE Florida Bay and Upper Keys · field · full text read

Along Florida's Gulf coast, cobia and many sharks move north in spring and south in fall; tarpon head north later, in summer.

Acoustic detections of 889 fish from 29 species, 2016 to 2018. Northbound moves dominated spring and southbound moves fall. Cobia, bull sharks and coastal sharks moved north more in spring; tarpon, cobia and bull sharks moved south more in fall. Tarpon northbound movement peaked in summer. Tampa Bay predator detections peaked in fall with red drum aggregations.

Florida Gulf coast · field · full text read

Great hammerheads return to the Jupiter area most years, mainly October through March, and leave as water warms.

Acoustic, satellite and photo-ID work on great hammerheads (2000-2016; 31 acoustic tags) found seasonal residency off Jupiter Inlet from October to March, with some fish returning four seasons in a row. Residency fell as water temperature rose. Fish made return migrations up to 3030 km and some stayed up to 5 months.

SE Florida; Bahamas (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Big migratory tarpon arrive in South Florida in late April and leave by late June, with a smaller fall push.

Tag-recapture, creel data and satellite tags (10 tarpon, 16 bull sharks): adult tarpon over 45.4 kg were nearly absent December-March, arrived mid-late April and left by late June, with a smaller October-November surge. Bull shark catch peaked December-January. Tarpon crossed shark-dense deep water fast and spent over 90% of time moving slowly near shallow structure.

Florida Keys; Florida Bay; Everglades; SW Florida · field · full text read

Adult male tiger sharks winter around Bahamas-area islands and head to open Atlantic water north of Bermuda each summer.

24 tiger sharks tagged at Bermuda, tracked up to 1,101 days. Sixteen larger sharks made yearly round trips over 7,500 km, wintering at Bahamas, Turks and Caicos or Anguilla, summering offshore, and staying in about 24-26 C water both seasons. The five smallest stayed near Bermuda. Few females were tracked.

western North Atlantic, Bermuda and Bahamas (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Most Florida-tagged dolphinfish are recaptured off Florida within about a week; others reach the Carolinas in about a month.

Dolphinfish Research Program to SAFMC (2002-Aug 2020): 28,209 tags, 706 recoveries; 43% tagged and recaptured off east Florida (mean 6.8 days at liberty, 0-57). Florida to NC mean 32.6 days (n=73). Florida captains report later seasons, best months now August-September; tagging shifted from May toward June-August after 2012.

East Florida to Mid-Atlantic; Bahamas; Caribbean (outside South Florida) · agency · agency document

Young swordfish center near the Caribbean in winter, move up the U.S. East Coast in spring and summer, and retreat south in fall.

Pooled pop-up tags (38 of 78 deployments, Newfoundland to the Straits of Florida) showed tagged fish stayed in the western Atlantic. Immature fish (under 179 cm) centered in the Caribbean in January-March, shifted to the coast from south Florida to Cape Cod in April-June, went farther north in summer and retreated south in fall. Mature fish ranged farther north.

western North Atlantic · field · full text read

Per ocean boat trip, east Florida dolphin catch peaks May-June; wahoo and blackfin peak September-December.

MRIP 2021-2024, private plus charter ocean trips; catch per 1,000 trips indexed to max by wave (Jan-Feb to Nov-Dec): dolphin 0.16, 0.30, 1.00, 0.68, 0.80, 0.15; king mackerel 0.29, 0.68, 1.00, 0.75, 0.62, 0.57; wahoo 0.33, 0.37, 0.43, 0.10, 0.87, 1.00; blackfin 0.61, 0.89, 0.49, 0.36, 0.80, 1.00; cobia 0.81, 0.69, 0.45, 0.49, 0.90, 1.00.

Florida Atlantic coast (MRIP South Atlantic Florida, excludes Monroe County) · agency · agency document

Per trip, east Florida yellowtail peak September-October, gray snapper late summer, and mutton in winter.

MRIP 2021-2024, private plus charter ocean trips; total catch per 1,000 trips indexed to max by wave (Jan-Feb to Nov-Dec): yellowtail 0.40, 0.55, 0.36, 0.45, 1.00, 0.57; mutton 1.00, 0.45, 0.52, 0.42, 0.64, 0.89; gray snapper 0.33, 0.58, 0.77, 0.89, 1.00, 0.73; amberjack 0.46, 0.99, 0.93, 1.00, 0.24, 0.51; red grouper 1.00, 0.55, 0.47, 0.36, 0.45, 0.48.

Florida Atlantic coast (MRIP South Atlantic Florida, excludes Monroe County) · agency · agency document

In Florida's Gulf plus Keys domain, dolphin catch per trip peaks July-August and blackfin and wahoo peak September-October.

MRIP 2021-2024 private plus charter ocean trips; catch per 1,000 trips indexed to max (Jan-Feb to Nov-Dec): dolphin 0.02, 0.13, 0.56, 1.00, 0.46, 0.04; blackfin 0.27, 0.69, 0.24, 0.34, 1.00, 0.20; mutton 1.00, 0.21, 0.13, 0.11, 0.20, 0.48; yellowtail 1.00, 0.57, 0.44, 0.38, 0.46, 0.68; hogfish 1.00, 0.28, 0.17, 0.15, 0.32, 0.73.

Florida Gulf coast including Monroe County (Keys) as one MRIP domain · agency · agency document

Daily normals should be a smooth curve fitted with about six annual harmonics, not raw calendar-day averages.

NCEI computes daily max and min temperature normals by a least squares fit of 6 harmonics (M=6) to raw day-of-year means, constrained so each month's daily normals average to the monthly normal; days with under 10 valid values borrow a wider window. Daily standard deviations use a 15-day window then a 29-day running mean.

United States (method) · agency · agency document

A day-of-year normal from 10 to 23 years of data is usable but provisional; 24 of 30 years counts as standard.

NCEI 1991-2020 normals are standard with at least 24 years (80 percent) of a 30-year period, representative with at least 10 years, and estimated from neighbours with at least 2 full years. Daily percentiles and frequencies pool all values in a 29-day window centered on each day, smoothed by a 29-day running mean, and require at least 10 qualifying years.

United States (method) · agency · agency document

Cobia tagged in central and south Florida are detected in every month, with resident and migratory groups.

SEDAR 58 stock ID review: acoustic tags in central and south Florida detected every month across 1,800 km; a resident group in central/south Florida and a migratory Keys/Gulf group, little exchange with Georgia-South Carolina. Virginia fish showed no December-March detections and wintered offshore; one PSAT popped off Daytona in February.

Central and South Florida Atlantic coast; Keys/Gulf · agency · agency document

Spotted seatrout in Florida Bay spawn March through October, peaking June to September, mostly at 26-34 C water.

Ichthyoplankton surveys 1994-1999 at up to 17 stations: seatrout larvae present March-October, peaks in June, August and September, absent in winter months. Most spawning occurred at 26-34 C (coldest catch 20 C) and 25-40 psu; larvae were rare or absent in the eastern and Atlantic transition zones and common in central and western basins.

Florida Bay · field · full text read

Gulf blue marlin summer in U.S. Gulf waters and winter off Mexico; some pass through the Florida Straits toward Cuba and the Bahamas.

Tags on 296 billfish, tunas and sharks (2003-2018, 22,289 daily positions) showed 59 blue marlin had 61.6% of July-September positions in the U.S. Gulf but over 70% of fall and winter positions off Mexico, some exiting via the Florida Straits. Yellowfin stayed mostly in the U.S. Gulf (89.5% of positions). Tiger sharks showed long U.S. residency.

Gulf of Mexico and Florida Straits (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Keys kingfish peak in winter as Gulf-group fish arrive; SE Florida holds some kingfish year-round.

12,493 king mackerel tagged 1975-1979. Fort Pierce and Keys releases showed annual cycles: through SE Florida and Keys late winter to early spring, northern Gulf spring-summer, back by late summer-fall. Jupiter recaptures in SE Florida came in all months, suggesting residents. Keys returns peaked February-March. Stock overlap off SE Florida 29.4-41.8%.

SE Florida (Jupiter, Fort Pierce) and Florida Keys · field · full text read

A month with 11 or more missing days, or 5 consecutive missing days, should not enter the normal.

WMO-No. 1203 guidance as applied by NOAA and MET Norway: a normal needs data for at least 80 percent of years (24 of 30) with no more than 3 consecutive missing years. The WMO monthly rule implemented in xclim treats a month as missing when 11 or more days, or a run of 5 or more consecutive days, are missing.

Global (WMO standard) (outside South Florida) · agency · agency document

Everglades river snook vary more from year to year in leaving for spawning, likely tied to freshwater flow.

Acoustic tracking of snook in the Shark River compared with a published Caloosahatchee study. Similar shares of fish stayed in the river through spawning season (presumed skipped spawning), but Shark River fish varied more between years, likely with freshwater flow and floodplain flooding, spent less time outside the river, and more left without returning.

Everglades; Charlotte Harbor · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

In September, red snapper, lane snapper and king mackerel eggs are common on the West Florida Shelf, sorted mainly by water depth.

DNA barcoding of 4,833 fish eggs from September surveys in 2013, 2014 and 2019 identified 82 species. Water depth structured egg assemblages more than region. Red, lane and vermilion snapper, yellowedge grouper and king mackerel eggs were frequent. Back-tracking 36 hours put spawning 1 to 79 km away, mean about 21 km.

West Florida Shelf · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

Cubera snapper aggregate to spawn in the Lower Keys in summer, on 26-35 m reef and on deep wrecks.

Fisher-identified cubera spawning: reef at 26-35 m peaking June-August, and high-relief wrecks at 67-85 m in May and June. Text notes a deep wreck at 45-80 m fished for spawning cubera.

Lower Florida Keys · survey · full text read

Lower Keys snapper spawning runs mutton May-June, then cubera and gray snapper July-August, mostly on 12-37 m reef.

Commercial fishers identified 22 potential snapper spawning sites in the Lower Keys. Peak months and site depths: mutton May-Jun at 12-37 m (one sand site 4-6 m); gray snapper Jul-Aug, July at some sites, at 9-37 m; yellowtail May-Jun at 26-30 m; lane snapper Jun at 17 m.

Lower Florida Keys · survey · full text read

Mutton snapper in Florida spawn mainly April through July, peaking May-June in the Keys around the full moon.

FWC/UF gonad data: active spawners first in April, last in September; core season April-July; peak share of spawning-capable females about 60% in May-June in the Keys, under 10% in SE Florida, suggesting migration from SE Florida to Keys spawning grounds. Aggregations reported near full moon March-July.

Florida Keys; SE Florida · agency · agency document

Seatrout spawn on evenings near the full moon, commuting from the bay and back within a day.

32 tagged seatrout and passive acoustics at a Tampa Bay spawning inlet, 2005. 23 fish returned to spawn; most came from the estuary and went back within 24 hours. 82% of chorus hours fell 18:00 to midnight. Spawning odds rose near full moon; current had no effect. A red tide cut the season after 13 July.

Tampa Bay · field · full text read

Snook numbers at an inlet spawning site peak in June and July and around new and full moons.

Capture sampling plus acoustic telemetry of 31 snook at a Tampa Bay inlet spawning site (2007-2009): fish numbers rose in June-July (peak spawning) and on new and full lunar phases. Snook showed annual and within-season fidelity to the site, with contingents using different overwintering habitats.

Tampa Bay area, W Florida · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

Female gag stack up in shallow water in early winter before moving deep to spawn February to mid-April; males are scarce.

Three-year study of 1,657 gag in the eastern Gulf. Spawning ran 1 February to 18 April. All-female pre-spawning groups formed on shallow sites (5 to 15 m) from November to February, while actively spawning females were taken at 65 to 99 m. Males were 5 percent of spawning-season catch in a protected area versus 15 percent expected, effectively zero elsewhere.

eastern Gulf of Mexico (West Florida Shelf) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Goliath grouper on summer and fall aggregation wrecks are most vocal after midnight and go quieter for several days around the full moon.

Passive acoustic recorders on two SW Florida Gulf aggregation wrecks (about 25 and 40 fish) logged low 60 Hz booms peaking 01:00-04:00, with quieter nights for 1-7 days around each full moon. One tagged adult stayed near bottom below 40 m for 2 months, making brief night ascents. Limited to two sites and one tagged fish.

eastern Gulf of Mexico, SW Florida (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Black grouper spawn in late winter, peaking February-March, from full moon to a few days after new moon.

Black grouper form many small aggregations that move to deeper water off the reef face; pair spawning at dusk; spawning from the full moon to a few days after the new moon on elbows, promontories and shelf-edge reef. Peak February-March.

Belize (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

Billfish and swordfish spawn in summer offshore Gulf water, with larvae densest near the Loop Current edge and fronts.

Six neuston surveys, June-July 2006-2008, caught 2,888 billfish and 264 swordfish larvae. Sailfish made up 70.4% of billfish larvae and were densest within 100 km of the Loop Current, salinity above 34, SST below 30.5 C. Marlin larvae favored 28-30 C slope water; swordfish below 28.5 C. Larvae only; daytime surface tows.

northern Gulf of Mexico slope, Alabama to Texas (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Black grouper courtship peaks about a week to ten days after the full moon, in late afternoon, during winter and spring.

Passive acoustics 2012 to 2014 at three aggregations, one on the lower Keys reef and two in Puerto Rico. In Florida, courtship sounds rose 7 to 11 days after full moon, peaking at day 10, and were elevated December to April except January, peaking in April 2012. About 48 percent of calls came 1500 to 1900 hours.

Florida Keys; Puerto Rico (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Greater amberjack spawn January-June, peaking April-May mainly off south Florida and the Keys; April is closed.

SAFMC panel document: spawning Jan-Jun, peak Apr-May, mostly off south Florida and Keys near the shelf break. April harvest closure. Commercial landings peak in May at about three times the monthly average; recreational landings mostly in wave 3 (May-Jun), mainly Florida.

South Atlantic incl. SE Florida and Keys · agency · agency document

Young adult redfish return to spawn in nearshore water off the estuary where they grew up.

20 subadult red drum tagged in Tampa Bay (2012) and 20 in Charlotte Harbor (2013), tracked 3 years. 74% of Tampa Bay fish reached nearshore adult habitat the year tagged, versus 24% from Charlotte Harbor (65% the next year). Fish from both returned to spawn off their home estuary.

Tampa Bay; Charlotte Harbor · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

In its first year the Vandenberg drew open-water fish such as amberjack, king mackerel and little tunny before reef species moved in.

REEF surveys April 2009-July 2010: 30 species on the wreck within a month, 100 within six months, 123 by July 2010. Early surveys featured sand and pelagic species (amberjack, juvenile blackfin snapper); later, reef fish. Little tunny, king mackerel and almaco jack were seen only on the Vandenberg. Volunteer sighting frequency: barracuda 86%, yellowtail 78%, amberjack 26%.

Florida Keys (Key West) · agency · agency document

Most bonefish stay on their home flats, recaptured within about 5 km, yet travel tens of kilometers to prespawn gatherings.

Over 7,000 bonefish dart-tagged on three Bahamas islands, with 105 recaptured (1.5%) by guides and anglers. 60-82% were recaptured within 5 km of tagging; mean distance under 11 km. Prespawning sites drew fish from home flats up to 75 km apart, with travel up to 80 km. Accepted manuscript read.

Bahamas (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Baby snook settle first in upstream tidal ponds, then move into the creek at about 40 mm before heading seaward.

Seining a Tampa Bay-area wetland, September 2006 to February 2007 (480 snook over two years), found young snook densest in upstream ponds (6.8 vs 2.7 fish per 100 m2 in the creek). Fish under 40 mm SL occurred only in ponds; isotopes showed strong site fidelity. Single wetland; second year had few recruits.

Tampa Bay · field · full text read

Solution holes with a red grouper held more juvenile reef fish, and a grouper offset the losses a lionfish caused.

Six-week field experiment in Florida Bay karst solution holes, 4 holes per treatment. Versus holes with no predator, juvenile reef fish fell 83.7 percent with a lionfish alone and rose 154 percent with a red grouper alone. With both predators, numbers matched no-predator holes, and lionfish diets shifted from fish to crustaceans. Small replicate count.

Florida Bay · experiment · full text read

West Florida hogfish use both estuary seagrass and nearshore reefs as juveniles; deeper adults likely grew up on nearshore reefs.

Eye-lens stable isotopes from 27 adult hogfish (27.2 to 74.6 cm) plus muscle from 37 juveniles. Carbon signals separated nearshore (under 30 m) and offshore (30 m or deeper) life histories. Discriminant analysis assigned 51.9 percent of adults to estuarine Cedar Key juvenile habitat, 25.9 percent Tampa Bay and 14.8 percent nearshore Keys. Small sample; 44.9 percent classification accuracy.

eastern Gulf of Mexico (West Florida Shelf) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Juvenile goliath grouper favor deeper, undercut red mangrove shorelines with overhangs and soft bottom.

Diver surveys of lower Keys mangrove channels found 52 juveniles (mean 42 cm TL, range 12-110 cm). Presence was tied to sites deeper than about 80 cm, wide overhangs and canopy, soft mud or sand, and concave eroded shorelines; wide prop-root zones were avoided. Visual surveys, partly non-random site selection.

Florida Keys · field · full text read

Tiger sharks roam widely and favor shallow seagrass banks, while reef sharks stay put on the same reefs.

Acoustic tracking of 23 Caribbean reef and 15 tiger sharks on 13 receivers at two islands over two years. Water depth then habitat type best predicted presence; lunar phase had no effect. Tiger sharks moved between habitats and used shallow seagrass most where it existed; reef sharks showed high site fidelity on deeper reefs.

Bahamas (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Southeast Florida reefs hold fewer species and fewer young target fish than protected reference reefs; adult target fish are scarce in the Keys too.

Diver surveys 2016-2018 on reefs shallower than 33 m, compared with a Dry Tortugas reference area. Richness and juvenile target density were lower in SE Florida; adult target density was lower in the Keys and SE Florida (P below 0.001). Mean lengths fell short for 4 of 10 species in the Keys, 4 of 9 in SE Florida.

SE Florida; Florida Keys; Dry Tortugas · field · full text read

Bull sharks, great hammerheads and nurse sharks do not avoid the Miami waterfront; many linger near the city.

Acoustic tracking of 14 great hammerheads, 13 bull and 25 nurse sharks in Biscayne Bay, 2016-2020. Distance to urban areas did not predict residency; stations off South Beach, Government Cut and Dinner Key logged the most sharks. Residency dropped at night and on weekends. Cause of urban residency unknown.

Biscayne Bay · field · full text read

Adult yellowtail snapper are most often found on high-relief reef and the deeper forereef; juveniles use patch reefs.

RVC 1999-2016 (hard bottom under 30 m). Adults (19 cm FL and up) had highest occurrence on high-relief reef and deep forereef strata; juveniles more on inshore to offshore patch reefs. The January 2010 cold event coincided with a drop in occurrence. Tortugas held more adults than the Keys.

Florida Keys; Dry Tortugas · agency · agency document

Tagged yellowtail snapper kept small home ranges, favored reef edges, and were more often absent in summer and at dusk or night.

Fifteen yellowtail snapper tracked 2008 to 2009 on 86 acoustic receivers for 1 to 427 days. Six fish showed high site fidelity (mean 58.4 percent). Estimated minimum home range averaged 5.45 km2. Fish preferred reef edge habitat and were more likely absent in summer and at dusk and night. Small sample.

Dry Tortugas (Florida Keys) · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

SE Florida shallow reefs hold far fewer yellowtail, gray snapper and hogfish than Keys reefs; mutton snapper are similar.

1,360 sites, 0-33 m, May-Oct 2012-2016. Percent occurrence SE Florida vs Keys vs Tortugas: yellowtail 27.9 vs 64.6 vs 80.5; gray snapper 9.3 vs 23.9 vs 19.0; hogfish 23.5 vs 70.3 vs 45.7; mutton 30.1 vs 24.7 vs 39.3. Depth (10 m split), reef type, relief and location drove assemblages.

SE Florida (Miami-Dade to Martin); compared with Florida Keys and Dry Tortugas · agency · agency document

Lightly altered mangrove shorelines near canals and marinas in south Biscayne Bay held fish communities similar to intact mangrove shorelines.

Comparing six intact and six canal or marina altered mangrove sites (2015-2019), species composition (ANOSIM p=0.60), total abundance (p=0.42) and richness (p=0.25) did not differ. Authors caution alteration was minor and results do not extend to heavily urbanized shorelines.

Biscayne Bay (southern) · field · full text read

Juvenile bonefish in Florida estuaries turn up mostly over bare sand or mud and sparse shoal grass.

FWC monitoring 1996-2019 caught 522 juvenile and 124 larval Albula, over half in the Indian River Lagoon, mostly over unvegetated sand or mud or sparse shoal grass. Modeled ranges were 21.3-33.5 C, oxygen 2.2-13.7 mg/L, salinity 18.0-38.9. Genetics showed mostly A. goreensis, not the sport bonefish.

Indian River Lagoon; Florida estuaries · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

High-relief Keys reefs hold more reef fish and more species than linear or patch reefs.

Reef Visual Census data, 5,672 sampling events 1999-2018. High-relief reefs averaged 20-30% higher abundance and about 20% more species than linear and patch reefs; biomass was over twice as high about 2000-2007, then only 20-30% higher. No-take zones led early, but the edge faded after about 2008.

Florida Keys · field · full text read

Mutton snapper on SE Florida reefs are mostly sub-adult; median sizes run larger in the Keys and larger again in the Dry Tortugas.

Diver-estimated median sizes from RVC: SE Florida 37 cm TL (about 10% at or above 50% maturity size), Florida Keys 44.4 cm (about 51%), Dry Tortugas 52 cm (about 77%). Length at 50% maturity 42.2 cm TL.

SE Florida; Florida Keys; Dry Tortugas · agency · agency document

Anglers fishing reef-type bottom in Biscayne National Park caught a mutton snapper on about 1 in 7 trips; most trips caught none.

Park creel interviews 1978-2022 (13,173 reef-habitat trips, identified by co-caught gray and yellowtail snapper, red grouper, grunts, porgy): mutton caught on 14% of trips; 75th percentile zero, 90th percentile 1 fish. Retained mutton 12.7-93.7 cm. Standardized catch rate was higher after 2007 than before.

Biscayne National Park · agency · agency document

Spiegel Grove filled with fish within weeks of sinking; black grouper, barracuda, hogfish and three snappers are regulars on the deep wreck.

REEF expert surveys 2002-2007 on the 510 ft wreck (deck about 85 ft, sand 130 ft): 46 species within a month, average 76 species per event later, 191 species total. Sighting frequencies over all surveys: hogfish 54%, great barracuda 50%, black grouper 49%, gray snapper 28%, yellowtail 18%, red grouper 17%, greater amberjack 15%, mutton 11%.

Florida Keys (Key Largo) · agency · agency document

The Vandenberg reached most of its fish species list within two years, but stays less diverse than nearby shallow reefs.

Across surveys since the May 2009 sinking, 84% of total species richness was reached after 2 years. In 2014/2015 the wreck had 105 expert-recorded species, versus 117-131 at shallow reference reefs (three nearby Key West reefs) and 84-109 at deep reference reefs.

Florida Keys (Key West) · agency · agency document

On the Vandenberg, yellowtail snapper were seen on nearly every survey and big barracuda patrol the superstructure.

REEF July 2014-2015 surveys: yellowtail snapper in 93-100% of surveys; scads and yellowtail made up 82% of 2,508 fish counted in 2014 point counts. Mean sizes: yellowtail about 22-23 cm, great barracuda 87-93 cm, gray snapper about 29 cm, bar jack about 21 cm. Superstructure 40 ft, deck about 100 ft, sand 140 ft; currents usually under 1 kt.

Florida Keys (Key West) · agency · agency document

Shallow coastal ponds ringed by salt marsh and overhanging mangroves are nurseries for juvenile snook, with juvenile tarpon nearby.

Seasonal seining August 2019 to May 2022 in 22 coastal ponds on the Cape Haze peninsula (651 net sets, 61,702 fish and selected invertebrates). Juvenile snook were most abundant in large, shallow ponds bordered by salt marsh, salterns and overhanging mangroves. Juvenile tarpon overlapped with snook but also used ponds farther inland.

Charlotte Harbor (Cape Haze peninsula), SW Florida · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

Six Broward ship reefs at 64-70 ft averaged about 490 fish per count, roughly 3-6 times nearby natural reef edges.

2000-2001 point counts on the Tracy, Merci Jesus, Jay Scutti, Peter B. McAllister, Robert Edmister and an unnamed barge: mean 491 fish per count vs 146 on the middle reef east edge and 79 on the outer reef west edge; Amberjack on Edmister (35) and McAllister (20); cobia on McAllister and the barge. Richness peaked December, biomass January.

SE Florida (Broward) · agency · agency document

Off Miami-Dade, high-relief limerock boulder reefs held more gamefish species than low, spread-out module or single-layer boulder reefs.

2019 re-survey of 7 county reefs (25-68 ft, deployed 1993-2005): gamefish richness 12 at Golden Beach Boulders, 11 at Anchorage Boulders and Port of Miami B Rows, 5-6 at Sunny Isles reefs. Lane snapper 451, yellowtail 131, hogfish 55 (none legal), 4 black grouper. Tomtate schools drove densities of 8.9-14.9 fish/m2 on two boulder reefs.

SE Florida (Miami-Dade) · agency · agency document

The Port of Miami limerock boulder rows and piles at 45 ft were the most species-rich county artificial reefs in the earlier survey.

In Miami-Dade's re-evaluation, Port of Miami B Piles and B Rows (limerock boulders, 45 ft, deployed 1996 as dredging mitigation) had 67 and 66 resident species in the previous survey, the highest, and the highest diversity and evenness. They also had more octocorals. In 2019, B Rows held 11 gamefish species and B Piles 9.

SE Florida (Miami-Dade) · agency · agency document

Bigger Gulf tiger sharks move off the shelf into deep water in fall and winter; small ones stay on the shelf.

SPOT tags on 56 tiger sharks, 2010-2018. Small sharks under 200 cm stayed on the shelf (91% of positions), often nearshore Florida in summer. Large sharks over 250 cm used slope water 31% of the time, shifting deeper October-April. Mean underlying depth was 1240 m in fall versus 363 m in summer. Most sharks were immature.

Gulf of Mexico (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Swordfish follow the deep prey layer day to day, while blue marlin and yellowfin rarely spend time below 200 m.

344 tags on 12 predator species (46,659 tracking days) showed every species reached past 900 m. Daily time deeper than 200 m was under 5% for blue marlin, yellowfin and tiger shark. Swordfish depth tracked the modeled deep scattering layer on 51% of days, largely independent of temperature. Prey layer depth was modeled, not measured, for most comparisons.

North Atlantic basin · field · full text read

Blue marlin sit at the surface at night but spend much of the day deeper, often 40 to over 100 m, with quick surface trips.

51 satellite tags on released blue marlin showed about 50% of night time in the top 10 m versus under 20% by day; time at or below 100 m was under 2% at night and about 17% by day. Recovered tags showed 91% of night time in the top 5 m versus 22% by day. Individuals varied widely.

western North Atlantic and Caribbean · field · full text read

Red grouper and scamp are the main game fish on the Pulley Ridge mesophotic reef at about 60-105 m.

ROV surveys 2012-2015 over 208 red grouper pits at 59-106 m. Red grouper in 35-46% of pits (50-80 cm TL, mean 60 cm), at most one per pit; red grouper and scamp were the most abundant economic species (0.40 and 0.35 per pit). Bottom temperature 18-29 C.

Pulley Ridge, SW Florida shelf (Gulf) · field · full text read

Red grouper move from shallow reefs to water deeper than about 36 m as they mature.

Summary of Moe 1969 tagging in an agency report: juveniles and subadults live at 3-18 m; around 40-45 cm SL and 4-6 years they shift offshore to over 36 m; usual maximum habitat depth about 120 m, with reports below 200 m. Tagged adults moved 28-72 km.

SE Florida; eastern Gulf (literature summary) · agency · agency document

On SE Florida reefs shallower than 33 m, few snapper are legal size and large groupers are rare.

Share of fish at or above legal size: mutton 10.7%, yellowtail 8.6%, gray snapper 31.8%, lane 48.3%, hogfish 24.6%. Only 22 black grouper, 15 gag, 35 scamp and 46 amberjack counted in five years. Several deep groupers and snappers absent at 0-33 m have been documented at 50-120 m off Broward.

SE Florida, reef 0-33 m · agency · agency document

Most yellowtail snapper caught on Florida charter and head boats come from water shallower than 20 m.

At-sea observers 2010-2017: mean capture depth of discarded yellowtail 10-26 m on headboats (max 53 m) and 8-17 m on charters (max 85 m); largely under 20 m. Good release condition 85.6% (headboat) and 79.1% (charter); immediate mortality under 2% in every region.

Florida Keys and SE Florida (for-hire) · agency · agency document

Keys charter boats catch most mutton snapper shallower than 10 m; SE Florida boats catch them mostly at 20-39 m.

At-sea observers 2009-2022, share of released mutton by depth. Keys charter: 76.5% at 0-9 m (headboat 54.0% at 0-9 m, 27.0% at 10-19 m). SE Florida charter: 92.3% at 20-39 m; headboat 61.6% at 20-39 m plus 16.0% at 40-49 m. Private-angler release share fell from about 95% at 0-9 m to 51-55% at 60-79 m.

Florida Keys; SE Florida · agency · agency document

Wahoo mostly stay above 50 m, while swordfish sit near the surface at night and drop to 700-800 m by day.

Review of conventional and electronic tagging: blue marlin and yellowfin mainly stay in the warm surface layer (marlin occasionally below 300 m); wahoo show less vertical range, mostly above 50 m; swordfish follow the deep scattering layer, within about 20-30 m of the surface at night and 700-800 m by day. Wahoo electronic data were scarce.

western North Atlantic and wider Caribbean · review · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

On Keys reefs, mutton snapper are seen more often at deeper, more seaward stations than on shallow patch reefs.

FWC analysis of NOAA/UM Reef Visual Census (RVC, stations to 33 m). Keys: mutton seen at 19% of 10,135 stations; mean depth where seen 11.3 m vs 8.0 m where absent. SE Florida: seen at 35% of 3,530 stations (median station depth 16 m). Dry Tortugas: 30% of stations, no depth effect.

Florida Keys; SE Florida; Dry Tortugas · agency · agency document

Hogfish occur on over half of surveyed Keys reef sites, favoring slightly deeper, higher-relief seaward reef.

RVC 1997-2024: hogfish seen at 55% of 9,616 Keys stations, mean station depth 8.4 m where seen vs 6.9 m where absent; habitat and rugosity were the top predictors. SE Florida 2013-2024: seen at 33% of 3,809 stations. Median size 23-24 cm FL; larger fish assumed deeper than 30 m.

Florida Keys; SE Florida · agency · agency document

Gray snapper are common on Keys reefs to 30 m, but larger adults also live deeper than divers survey.

Gray snapper seen at 22.5% of 13,607 RVC stations (1997-2018). Median diver-estimated size 24 cm TL; 29% at or above 30.5 cm. Depth category, habitat and reef zone predicted presence. Author used dome selectivity because the species ranges deeper than the 30 m survey limit. Counts of 350-1,605 fish likely spawning aggregations.

Florida Keys; Dry Tortugas · agency · agency document

After about three years, the Spiegel Grove fish community resembled nearby deep reef ledges more than shallow reefs or the Benwood.

Year to year species overlap on the wreck stayed near 50% early on, then rose toward natural reef levels about 3 years after sinking (2005). By 2007 composition was most similar to deep natural ledges (Dixie Ledge, Red Can Ledges) and least similar to shallow reefs and the 1942 Benwood wreck, which had 196 species.

Florida Keys (Key Largo) · agency · agency document

Weekly water level departures from the tide can be forecast with skill out to 2 to 3 weeks.

Subseasonal reforecasts (2000-2019) of non-tidal residual water level at U.S. gauges beat damped persistence through 2 to 3 weeks, IFS up to 6 weeks; Gulf stations kept correlation near or above 0.5 to week 6. Damped persistence used the previous 7-day mean anomaly times each station's lead-dependent autocorrelation. Adding the inverse barometer effect helped weeks 1 to 2.

U.S. coastal tide gauges incl. Virginia Key, Vaca Key, Key West, Naples · model · full text read

Bonefish were most active at dawn, on ebbing and low tides and in cooler 22-25 C water, and fed mostly at night.

Accelerometer loggers on 5 bonefish over 5 days in an Eleuthera wetland pond cut off from the sea. Fish rested 57% of the time and fed about 11 times per hour. Activity peaked at dawn and in 22-25 C water, and was highest on ebbing and low tides, lowest on flood. Tiny sample; tide signal may be an internal rhythm.

Bahamas (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

A water level forecast is only worth showing if it beats the tide table plus today's offset.

NOS requires model water level and current forecasts to beat (1) astronomical tide prediction alone and (2) tide prediction plus a persisted non-tidal offset observed before forecast time; for temperature, salinity and non-tidal water level, the model must beat another method. A model that is no improvement should not be implemented.

U.S. coastal (NOAA standard) · agency · agency document

Reef sharks in a tidal pass were most active at night, on outgoing current and around full and new moons.

Depth and accelerometer tags on 38 gray reef sharks in a Fakarava atoll pass, July 2017-June 2018. Sharks used more space and were more active at night and on outgoing currents, and activity peaked at full and new moon. They swam deeper by day (about 18.6 m) than night (16.1 m). Effects were modest; individual differences explained more.

French Polynesia (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

A weaker Florida Current raises South Florida water levels by about 1.4 cm per Sverdrup.

Geostrophic balance links Florida Current transport to coastal sea level at about -1.4 cm per Sv. A 3 Sv transport decline (2004-2014, EMD trend) matched mean sea level rises of 7.4, 7.1 and 5.9 cm at Vaca Key, Florida Bay and Virginia Key; annual transport and sea level cycles correlated at -0.86 to -0.92.

Florida Straits, Florida Bay and Keys tide gauges · field · full text read

In eastern Florida Bay the tide is only a few centimetres; wind, not tide, sets water depth.

A 3-D model validated with 1993-1994 water level data showed M2 tidal amplitude damped to about 1 to 5 cm in the very shallow eastern bay (depths generally under 50 cm), about 1 cm with wetting and drying; tidally averaged setup in the eastern bay drives southward residual flow through Keys channels.

Florida Bay · model · full text read

Estuary bream were most active on daytime high tides and least active at night, and moon phase added nothing.

Accelerometer tags on 6 yellowfin bream for about four months in 2011. The best model kept light, tide, depth and a light-by-tide interaction: activity was lowest at night regardless of tide and highest on daytime high tide. Lunar phase (P = 0.47), turbidity and temperature dropped out. Small sample, winter period.

Australia (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Spring larval tuna and mahi numbers in the central Gulf rose and fell with how far north the Loop Current reached.

Altimetry 1992-2008 matched to 1,632 spring SEAMAP stations, 1993-2007. In a box at 26N 87W, combined larval density of five pelagic taxa tracked Loop Current northward excursions (R2 0.71). Bluefin and Auxis larvae were denser at anticyclone boundaries, about 148-158 cm sea surface height. Larvae only; no link outside the current's reach.

northern Gulf of Mexico (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

The Florida Current carries about 32 million cubic meters per second, strongest in July and weakest in January.

25-year cable record at 27 N: mean transport 32.1 Sv, standard deviation about 3.3 Sv; annual cycle amplitude about 0.9 Sv with maximum in July and minimum in January. Day-to-day variability far exceeds the seasonal signal.

Northern Straits of Florida (27 N) · field · full text read

Water inside a Florida Straits eddy held far more larval fish and copepods than nearby Florida Current water.

A towed imaging system (132 million plankton images) crossed a decaying cyclonic eddy edge in June 2015, days before it dissipated. Larval fish and Oithona copepods were significantly denser in eddy water than Florida Current water, with patches tightly overlapping. Current speed and direction, not feeding, mainly explained distributions. One eddy; prey base, not gamefish.

Florida Straits · field · full text read

Gulf yellowfin catches stay fairly steady year-round and show little link to eddies or surface temperature, unlike bluefin.

Observer longline data (1993-2005) plus tagging cruises: yellowfin catch rate ranged from 5.48 per 1000 hooks in March to 12.8 in July (monthly CV 0.26 versus 1.38 for bluefin). SST and sea height anomaly dropped out of the yellowfin model; lower wind and deeper water went with higher catch. Bluefin favored cool cyclonic eddies. Commercial gear.

Gulf of Mexico (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

A cold Tortugas eddy sat off the lower Keys for about three months, greener than surrounding water and 2-4 C cooler below the surface.

Satellite, Argo, ship ADCP and HYCOM data tracked a cyclonic eddy formed April 9, 2017 that stayed off the lower Keys from April 23 to July 15. It averaged about 100 km across and reached about 800 m deep. Chlorophyll was higher; subsurface water was 2-4 C cooler, but summer surface temperature showed little difference. Single eddy.

Florida Straits, lower Keys · field · full text read

Juvenile tarpon leave shallow mangrove nursery creeks when water drops below about 20 C, not in response to water levels.

Tagged juvenile tarpon (25-35 cm TL) entered restored mangrove habitat within 3 days of construction. Emigration from juvenile habitat was significantly related to temperatures below 20 C, not water level; half emigrated in one winter and the rest a year later.

Restored mangrove creeks, south Florida · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

Tagged tuna, marlin and sailfish spent much of their time on ocean fronts and eddy edges, including the Florida Current edge.

Rebuilding 124 satellite-tag tracks with ocean heat content showed 52.4% of tuna, marlin and sailfish spent over 60% of their time on fronts and eddies, though these covered only about 18% of available habitat (2009-2013). A Keys sailfish rode the Florida Current edge, then the Loop Current edge. Method paper; habitat association, not catch.

Gulf of Mexico and western North Atlantic (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

In Gulf longline data, satellite temperature breaks alone did not predict where yellowfin tuna were caught.

Compared 6,618 longline sets, 1986-1987, with 109 satellite SST images. Mean catch was 14.2 yellowfin per 1000 hooks and 79.2% of sets caught at least one. No relation appeared between catch rate and local SST, SST variability or gradient. Caveat: only one position per set, and lines can exceed 50 miles.

northwestern Gulf of Mexico (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Cyclonic eddies in the Atlantic Sargassum belt hold more weed than nearby water, mostly in their centers.

Daily MODIS Sargassum maps (3 km) and altimetry eddies from 2011-2023 showed cyclonic eddies held 6-47% more Sargassum than eddy-free water in all five regions, concentrated within half an eddy radius of the center. Warm eddies varied. Bigger, stronger eddies held more; density fell in winds above about 7.2 m/s. Weed only, no fish.

tropical Atlantic and Caribbean (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Young tarpon tolerate salinity from near fresh to over 40 ppt and water up to at least 36 C.

Review of flats fishes and climate: juvenile tarpon in coastal marsh nurseries withstand salinities near zero to over 40 ppt and temperatures to at least 36 C, and gulp air under near-anoxic conditions. Abrupt drops over 7 C below ambient can impair bonefish and other flats fishes.

Review, flats fisheries (incl. Florida) · review · full text read

Florida Bay fish kills in 2015 came with bottom water above 65 PSU and 38 C.

Late summer 2015 salinities in Rankin Lake, Johnson Key and Whipray basins hit 15-year highs above 50-60 PSU for weeks; where fish kills occurred, bottom water exceeded 65 PSU and 38 C under stratification (surface about 50 PSU, 35 C). NPS reported two July 2015 kills of toadfish and pinfish; about 88 km2 of seagrass died.

Florida Bay (north-central basins) · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

Young bull sharks avoid water fresher than about 7 PSU and move upriver when the river runs saltier.

56 young bull sharks tracked up to 460 days in the Caloosahatchee. They avoided salinity under 7 and favored 7 to at least 20 (switch point 8 for all years). Mean river position tracked salinity; at flows above 113 m3 per second they stayed near the mouth, but spread through the river below 57. Temperature mattered little.

Charlotte Harbor (Caloosahatchee River) · field · full text read

Juvenile spotted seatrout abundance peaks near 17 to 20 ppt salinity and rises with warmth up to about 28 C.

GAMs on FWC seine data from three Florida estuaries: unimodal salinity effect peaking at 20 ppt (IRL), 17 ppt (Tampa Bay), 18 ppt (Charlotte Harbor). Abundance increased with temperature to 28 C, then declined in IRL, kept rising in TB, flat in CH. Seagrass and sand-mud bottoms were most productive.

Indian River Lagoon, Tampa Bay, Charlotte Harbor · model · full text read

Along southern Biscayne Bay mangrove shorelines, gray snapper make up nearly half of fish biomass, with barracuda and snook next among gamefish.

NOAA IBBEAM visual transects (30 x 2 m) at 12 shoreline sites, 2015-2019, dry and wet seasons: 16,752 fish of 36 taxa analyzed. Mojarras were 45% of numbers; gray snapper 11% of numbers but 46% of biomass; barracuda 9% and snook 4% of biomass. Assemblages split by salinity (higher, steadier) and depth, not by shoreline type.

Biscayne Bay (southern) · field · full text read

West-central Florida Bay commonly reaches 40 to 50 PSU by late dry season and has hit 70 PSU.

Review of die-off drivers: salinities of 40-50 PSU are frequent at the end of the dry season (April-May) in west-central Florida Bay, with 70 PSU recorded. Seagrass photosynthesis declines above about 60 PSU, oxidation stress risk rises above 55 PSU, and water above 33 C breaks down seagrass physiology.

Florida Bay · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

In the southern Indian River Lagoon, clearer, saltier water near inlets held more shark and ray species; bull sharks dominated near freshwater outflows.

Fishery-independent survey 2016-2018 caught 630 elasmobranchs of 16 species. Bull sharks and Atlantic stingrays were each over 20% of catch, most abundant in fall; bull sharks most common near Vero Beach and the St. Lucie River. Diversity rose in clearer, deeper, saltier water nearer inlets and farther from freshwater sources.

Southern Indian River Lagoon (Sebastian to St. Lucie Inlet) · field · agency document

Juvenile tarpon in Texas bays are most likely in fresh to brackish water below about 20 PSU and at 20 to 27 C.

GAMs on four decades of TPWD gillnet data: tarpon presence higher in fresh and brackish water, declining as salinity rose to about 20 PSU; presence rose with temperature to about 22 C and turned negative near 27-28 C. DO was not important in most models, attributed to air breathing.

Texas bays, northern Gulf (out of region) (outside South Florida) · model · full text read

Florida law sets marine oxygen standards at 42 percent saturation daily, 51 weekly and 56 monthly.

Rule 62-302.533 F.A.C.: in predominantly marine Class II and III waters, daily average DO saturation shall not fall below 42 percent in more than 10 percent of values; 7-day average 51 percent; 30-day average 56 percent. Peninsula and Everglades fresh waters use 38 percent.

Florida (state rule) · agency · agency document

Florida treats daily oxygen under 2.8 mg/L as lethal risk and over 4.9 mg/L as fully protective.

Using the EPA Virginian Province approach with Florida species, DEP derived a juvenile/adult survival criterion (CMC) of 2.8 mg/L (about 42 percent saturation) and a growth criterion (CCC) of 4.9 mg/L (about 64 percent saturation); between them, exposure duration limits apply via a larval recruitment curve.

Florida marine waters (agency) · agency · agency document

Lethal oxygen for half of tested fish: red drum 1.45, pompano 1.74, spotted seatrout 1.88 mg/L.

Florida DEP compiled acute low-DO LC50s for 26 marine species. LC50s: red drum 1.45, striped mullet 1.38, pinfish 1.61, Florida pompano 1.74, spotted seatrout 1.88, scaled sardine 2.17 mg/L. Pompano and seatrout were among the four most sensitive species.

Florida (agency synthesis) · agency · agency document

The August 2020 Biscayne Bay fish kill came with oxygen as low as 0.2 mg/L, 29-33 C water, calm winds and low tides.

Miami-Dade summary: the 4-11 August 2020 kill in two northern Biscayne Bay basins had surface DO of 0.2-3 mg/L, water 29-33 C, winds under 3.5 m/s, high nutrients and long residence time, killing bottom fish. A 2021 kill covered 4 basins. About 70% of seagrass (about 64 of 91 square km) was lost in affected areas.

North Biscayne Bay, Miami-Dade · agency · agency document

In lab tests the mean sublethal oxygen threshold across 34 fish experiments was 4.4 mg/L, well above the 2 mg/L hypoxia label.

Meta-analysis of benthic marine organisms: fish mean LC50 1.54 mg/L (90th percentile 2.51), mean sublethal SLC50 4.41 mg/L (90th percentile 8.09), mean LT50 59.9 h. Across all taxa, 90th percentile LC50 was 4.59 mg/L; the conventional 2 mg/L hypoxia line is below thresholds for half of species.

Global meta-analysis (outside South Florida) · review · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

Keys water got clearer offshore since 1995, but Upper Keys inshore and backcountry bottoms now get less light.

Turbidity declined throughout the FKNMS over 31 years, most in the northern Sluiceway, Backcountry and Marquesas, with increases at some Upper Keys shore sites. Kd fell offshore and at the Marquesas but rose at isolated Backcountry, Sluiceway, shore and inshore sites; Upper Keys inshore lost bottom light. No significant salinity trend.

Florida Keys · agency · agency document

EPA targets for Keys reefs: chlorophyll a at or under 0.35 ug/L and light attenuation at or under 0.20 per meter.

EPA Strategic Targets (SP-47) for the FKNMS, judged against a 1995-2005 baseline: reef sites chlorophyll a 0.35 ug/L or less and Kd 0.20 per m or less; all sites DIN 0.75 uM (10.5 ppb) or less and TP 0.25 uM (7.7 ppb) or less. Kd has met target since 2006; chlorophyll was elevated 2017-2022 and returned lower 2023-2025.

Florida Keys · agency · agency document

In very murky water, a sight-feeding reef fish took longer to start searching, swam farther and found food less efficiently.

Aquarium trials with Picasso triggerfish (4 fish analyzed) at high turbidity (40 to 68 NTU) versus low (0.4 to 1.4 NTU). In murky water fish waited 26.8 s longer to start, needed 111.5 s more total foraging time and swam 3.5 m farther on more tortuous paths. Indo-Pacific species, tiny sample, lab only.

Laboratory aquarium (out of region) (outside South Florida) · experiment · full text read

Record storm runoff that cooled, freshened and drained oxygen from an estuary pushed resident fish out to the coast.

Acoustic tracking of 43 striped bass through Tropical Storms Irene and Lee, 2011, versus a normal 2010. River discharge hit 4,471 m3/s versus about 269 in a normal August. Temperature, salinity and oxygen fell in the lower estuary, and fish moved downriver and out to the coast; some made later scouting trips back. Not a Florida species.

Hudson River, New York (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

After heavy 2015 rain and St. Lucie releases, turbid water came offshore yet reef schools and goliath grouper spawning persisted.

After a September 2015 heavy rainfall and freshwater release, water-column backscatter rose about 12,000 percent; school backscatter rose 172 percent and schooling density 182 percent, then fell after the perturbation. Goliath grouper courtship sound continued throughout the turbid period.

SE Florida nearshore reefs (St. Lucie discharge) · field · full text read

Phosphorus has risen near Keys shorelines since 1995 while nitrogen and organic carbon fell.

Surface TP rose significantly at 48 sites, mostly close to land (median +0.002 mg/L, about 44 percent over 1995), pointing to land sources; deeper surrounding waters declined. TN declined except in the Sluiceway next to Florida Bay; TOC (a CDOM proxy) fell until about 2005. DIN and TP both rose Keys-wide in 2025.

Florida Keys · agency · agency document

Plumes from Miami and Broward inlets drift mostly north but also reach tens of kilometers south, worst in the wet season.

SLIM ocean model, September 2018 to August 2021, releasing inlet water from Government Cut, Haulover, Port Everglades and Hillsboro using SFWMD flows. Plumes ran mostly north but had southern footprints of tens of km. Government Cut had a bigger footprint and load than the other inlets modeled. Concentrations were higher in the wet season, May to October. Model only.

SE Florida · model · agency document

Since January 2026 Florida law bars routine sewage discharge from SE Florida ocean outfalls; only wet-weather backup flows remain.

Florida Statute 403.086(10) prohibits domestic wastewater discharge through ocean outfalls after December 31, 2025, except backup discharges within a functioning reuse system, mainly in wet weather; peak-flow backups are capped at 5 percent of baseline flow (5 year rolling). Outfall effluent had to meet advanced treatment (TN 3 mg/L, TP 1 mg/L annual average) by 2018.

SE Florida (Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach) nearshore Atlantic · agency · agency document

During big freshwater releases snook move more and slide into slower side waters, but do not leave the estuary.

Acoustic telemetry of 279 tagged snook in the St. Lucie Estuary, 2008-2014, across four high-discharge events. No large synchronized exodus; snook were more likely to move during discharges and with bigger salinity changes in either direction. Fish 602-786 mm TL used a slower-flow tributary. Individual behavior varied.

St. Lucie Estuary (SE Florida) · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

Nitrate on SE Florida reefs spikes after strong inlet outflow, and phosphorus rises after rain.

Monthly bottom water samples at 29 reef sites, 2018 to 2021, modeled with boosted regression trees against inlet outflow, rain and wind. Nitrate peaked when summed inlet flow was 75 to 100 m3/s over 3 days and rain topped 50 mm. Orthophosphate peaked near 200 mm of rain over 14 days. Suspended solids were poorly explained. No fish data.

SE Florida · field · full text read

Keys chlorophyll has crept up about a third since 1995 at some sites, mostly shallow water near land.

Over 1995-2025 (122 quarterly surveys, 112 stations in 2025), chlorophyll a rose significantly at 17 of 112 sites by 0.06 to 0.14 ug/L (median 0.10), about 37 percent above 1995, strongest at shallow nearshore stations but also some offshore reefs and passes. Authors call it slow eutrophication.

Florida Keys · agency · agency document

Red tide above 10,000 cells per liter can cause fish kills and breathing irritation; above 100,000, fish kills are probable.

FWC Karenia brevis key: background 1,000 cells/L or less (no effects); very low over 1,000-10,000 (possible respiratory irritation, shellfish closures from 5,000); low over 10,000-100,000 (possible fish kills); medium over 100,000-1,000,000 (probable fish kills, satellite-visible chlorophyll); high over 1,000,000 (plus water discoloration).

Florida statewide (Gulf and Atlantic coasts) · agency · agency document

Satellite color data can map Indian River Lagoon brown tide closely enough to track blooms early, especially in the Banana River.

Varimax principal component analysis of 12 Sentinel-3A OLCI images over about 1.5 years, checked against a hand spectroradiometer and water samples at 11 sites. The brown tide component tracked Ochrophyta biovolume with R2 of 0.92 (satellite, 300 m pixels) and 0.93 (field). Bloom was concentrated in the Banana River. Method study; no fish data.

Indian River Lagoon · field · full text read

Severe red tides knock down shelf fish biomass and catch, with 2005 the worst year; young gag take the heaviest hit.

Ecospace ecosystem model with lethal and sublethal red tide responses, 2002-2020. Biomass loss peaked in 2005, then 2018, 2019, 2006 and 2012. For gag, 71 of 160 scenarios passed validation; red tide mortality was highest in 2005 and fell hardest on younger fish. Survey checks in 2005, 2014 and 2015 confirmed declines inside bloom areas. Model, not direct counts.

West Florida Shelf · model · full text read

Large bull sharks appear off beaches more when water is above 20 C, after heavy rain, and in moderate 1.8-2.8 m swell.

233 tagged bull sharks and 21 beach receivers, 2017-2023. Large sharks occurred more when water exceeded 20 C (peak 23 C), after more than 45 mm of rain, and in 1.8-2.8 m swell; moon and tide had no effect. Top stations sat within 800 m of river mouths. Juveniles were not detected until 157 cm.

New South Wales, Australia (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Offshore wave height forecasts are typically within about 0.4 m on day 1, degrading most between days 4 and 10.

A 20-year GEFSv12 WAVEWATCH III reforecast verified against offshore buoys (coastal sites excluded) gave significant wave height RMSE 0.37 m and correlation 0.95 on day 1, ensemble-mean RMSE 0.57 m and correlation 0.88 in week 1, 0.87 m and 0.70 in week 2; bias near zero. Scatter error grew mostly between days 4 and 10.

Global offshore buoys (NDBC and Copernicus) (outside South Florida) · model · full text read

Juvenile redfish make longer bay moves when water drops below 16 C and salinity is falling, conditions that followed winter fronts.

Acoustic arrays in Christmas Bay, Jan-May 2012, with 14 juvenile red drum. Odds of moving over 1 km rose on days salinity was falling, when salinity was above 25, and below 16 C. Authors tie falling salinity to winter cold fronts. Max daily move 7.7 km. Fronts were not modeled directly.

Texas (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Juvenile tarpon leave isolated mangrove ponds on low pressure and high water; distant ponds need tropical storm flooding to let them out.

Acoustic telemetry of juvenile tarpon in coastal ponds on the Cape Haze peninsula. Emigration rose with low barometric pressure, high water level and larger body size. Ponds near tidal creeks drained fish on summer king tides; ponds farther inland needed tropical cyclone conditions. Fish later appeared at river mouths about 30 km up-estuary. Pressure effect not given as a threshold.

Charlotte Harbor · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

In lab tests, fish learned a feeding depth and found it again using water pressure alone.

Lab trials with Mexican tetras. Ten of 27 fish learned a food site depth with visual cues scrambled. When water was added to change pressure, fish shifted their search depth as predicted in 17 of 30 trials, for example 15 cm higher after 15 cm was added. Hydrostatic, not weather, pressure; mechanism only.

laboratory (out of region) (outside South Florida) · experiment · full text read

Tagged red snapper were far more likely to leave their home reef on low-pressure storm days.

Acoustic positioning of 71 red snapper at 34-38 m, 101 km offshore, 2020-2022. Low-pressure days (below 1007.96 mb) raised daily emigration probability to 0.072 from 0.00041, about 175 times. Departures also clustered in May-June and Sept-Oct. Annual site fidelity was 54-63%; one fish dispersed 206 km.

West Florida Shelf · field · full text read

Young blacktips left a Tampa Bay nursery before a tropical storm, about when pressure fell to 1007 hPa and wind reached 25 km/h.

Acoustic tracking of 14 juvenile blacktips (54-61 cm) in Terra Ceia Bay during Tropical Storm Gabrielle, Sept 2001. Half had left when pressure hit 1007.4 hPa and wind 24.6 km/h; none were inside 3-6 h before landfall. Fish stayed outside about 6-7 days, were back about 21 days later; 10 of 14 returned. Australian species were analysed too.

Tampa Bay · field · full text read

Inshore fish calling dropped to its lowest at a tropical storm's peak, then jumped to its highest right after it passed.

Passive acoustic recorders inside Tampa Bay and offshore during Tropical Storm Debby, June 2012 (pressure low 1002.2 mb, surge 1.17 m). Storm noise rose up to 13.5 dB. Inshore, total calls fell lowest at the storm peak and peaked afterward, led by sand seatrout and silver perch. Spotted seatrout and red drum calls were too rare to test.

Tampa Bay; eastern Gulf of Mexico (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Sharks briefly left a nursery during a tropical storm; a sudden water temperature drop was the strongest cue, falling pressure secondary.

Acoustic array tracking 22 juvenile white sharks through Tropical Storm Hilary, Aug 2023. Water temperature fell 6 C in 12 hours. Hourly sharks detected fell from 16-19 to 8; emigration probability peaked at 0.311 versus 0.011 baseline. Falling SST was the top predictor; waves, falling pressure and salinity were secondary. Nearly all returned within three weeks.

Southern California (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

During two Category 5 hurricanes, tagged nearshore fish shifted briefly toward deeper water, but most stayed in the bay for months.

Acoustic array in Brewers Bay, St Thomas, during Irma and Maria, Sept 2017. Six fish (lane, mangrove and mutton snapper, tarpon) and four southern stingrays were tagged. Several moved toward deeper water and widened their range the week after Irma; all fish stayed over 14 weeks, but two stingrays left. Water cooled about 2 C and oxygen fell 1-2 mg/L.

US Virgin Islands (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Young bull sharks fled the Shark River ahead of Hurricane Irma as pressure fell, and most came back within weeks to months.

Acoustic tracking of 14 juvenile bull sharks, 2016-2018. Eleven left between 17 days before and 1 day after Irma; nine returned after about 55 days, six having been detected about 80 km north. Three youngest sharks likely died. Falling pressure and faster pressure change best predicted departure; river stage effect was weak.

Everglades (Shark River Estuary) · field · full text read

Summer storms that mixed and warmed bottom water cut reef fish movement by about half, and late storms pushed some off reefs.

Acoustic tracking of 8-15 black sea bass per year at three reefs, 2016-2018, paired with an ocean model. Six storms broke up stratification, warming bottom water 5.7-10.9 C. Activity fell about 50% after storms, and some fish left reefs for good. Bottom warming was the main driver; turbulence and current were smaller effects.

Mid-Atlantic Bight (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Juvenile fish in seagrass mostly held up through tropical storms, but the strongest storms brought the biggest short-term drops.

Monthly trawls in Back Sound seagrass, 2010-2020, across ten tropical cyclones, before-after-control-impact design. On average catch and richness were not altered. Storm energy correlated with bigger short-term declines (R2 0.52 for catch), with Hurricane Florence worst. Seagrass looked largely undamaged. Juveniles only.

North Carolina (out of region) (outside South Florida) · field · full text read

Tagged swordfish sat deeper at night near the full moon than near the new moon: a depth note for night baits, not a bite forecast.

Pop-up satellite tags on 7 swordfish over 3 lunar cycles in 2002. Night depths averaged 77 m with the moon 90% or more lit and 34 m at 10% or less (correlation -0.66 on nightly means). Fish held 0-160 m at night and 350-770 m by day. Very small sample.

western North Atlantic · field · full text re-read Oct 16, 2026

Predators take small fish about twice as often at night as by day, and most often right at the mangrove edge.

234 one-hour tethering runs with 10-17 cm pinfish at 10, 50 and 110 m from a Biscayne Bay mangrove edge, July-September 2008. Losses ran from about 10% by day at 110 m to nearly 70% at night at 10 m; night removal was about double. Gray snapper, barracuda and juvenile lemon sharks were among identified predators.

Biscayne Bay · experiment · full text read

Most Florida reef anglers know floaters; most help with venting tools, while descending devices see far less use.

Email survey of 2013 saltwater license holders, 825 completed of 50,000 sent (1.65%). Almost two-thirds of trips were deeper than 30 feet. Nearly three-fourths of deep-water anglers had seen fish struggle to return. Of the 92% using venting tools, about 63% wanted training; descending gear use was much lower. Low response rate.

Florida statewide · survey · agency document

Released gray triggerfish die more often when caught in deeper water or when surface water is hot, worst in August.

Tag returns from 3,744 triggerfish released from for-hire boats off the Florida Panhandle, 2022 to 2024 (depth 20 to 67 m, SST 15 to 31 C). Survival dropped beyond 31.25 m and 22.85 C. At 30 C, modeled mortality was 0.51 at 20 m and 0.96 at 70 m. Monthly mortality ranged 0.06 in February to 0.65 in August.

Florida Panhandle, eastern Gulf · field · full text read

About one in four released mutton snapper on for-hire trips shows impairment or deep hooking; deeper SE Florida fish are vented more.

For-hire observer data: 44% released in good condition without venting, 26% vented and swam down, 1% descended, 19% impaired, 9% deep-hooked, 1% dead or eaten. Keys fish (shallow) mostly released without barotrauma help; SE Florida fish (deeper) vented far more often.

Florida Keys; SE Florida · agency · agency document

Updated RECOVER envelope for the St. Lucie: optimum flows top out near 1,400 cfs; stress begins there and damage above 1,700 cfs.

Martin County comments on the draft 2020 RECOVER Northern Estuaries salinity envelope report a St. Lucie optimum envelope from 150 to 1,400 cfs, stress from 1,400 cfs and damaging flows from 1,700 cfs (14-day averages), replacing the 2007 measure of 350-2,000 cfs.

St. Lucie Estuary, SE Florida · agency · agency document

Caloosahatchee estuary health is best when S-79 flows mostly sit at 450-800 cfs; months above 2,800 cfs push freshwater toward Shell Point.

CERP RECOVER performance measure (revised 2007): about 75% of S-79 flows should be 450-800 cfs and the rest 800-2,800 cfs. Mean monthly flows over 2,800 cfs make more than half the estuary above Shell Point fresh; over 4,500 cfs degrade San Carlos Bay. Adult oysters die below 3 ppt, reached when S-79 exceeds 4,000 cfs.

Caloosahatchee Estuary, SW Florida · agency · agency document

C-51 canal pulses of 1,000 cfs or more freshen central Lake Worth Lagoon below the 15 ppt minimum target.

RECOVER targets for Lake Worth Lagoon: keep C-51 inflow at 0-500 cfs (7-day moving average), eliminate events of 1,000 cfs or more (2-day moving average) and sustained flows over 500 cfs. Minimum desirable salinity is 15 ppt; seagrass target 20 ppt; Halophila died within 3 days at 5 ppt.

Lake Worth Lagoon (C-51), Palm Beach County · agency · agency document

St. Lucie discharges above about 2,000 cfs drive mid-estuary salinity near 3 ppt, a level that kills oysters and seagrass.

RECOVER salinity envelope: St. Lucie flows of 725-3,280 cfs produced salinities of 1-5 ppt; 2,000 cfs yields about 3 ppt at mid-estuary, implicated in 1998-1999 oyster deaths. Spring 1998 and summer 1999 releases above 2,000 cfs drove salinity below 1 ppt and killed over 90% of remaining oysters. Target at Roosevelt Bridge is 12-20 ppt.

St. Lucie Estuary, SE Florida · agency · agency document

Current RECOVER envelope: S-79 at 750-2,100 cfs (14-day average) is optimum; above 2,600 cfs is damaging.

SCCF weekly condition reports apply the RECOVER 2020 envelope to the S-79 14-day moving average: optimum 750-2,100 cfs, damaging above 2,600 cfs. Example: October 2025, 14-day mean 1,059 cfs, optimum for 11 days after 36 days damaging. The original RECOVER 2020 document was not retrieved here.

Caloosahatchee Estuary, SW Florida · agency · agency document

Anglers with cuts should stay out of warm salt or brackish water; Vibrio vulnificus wound infections kill about one in five.

CDC HAN 00497 (Sept 1, 2023): about 150-200 V. vulnificus infections reported yearly; about 1 in 5 die, some within 1-2 days. Bacteria favor warm, lower-salinity water such as estuaries, May-October. Main route is open wounds in salt or brackish water; floods and storm surge raise exposure, as seen in Florida after Hurricane Ian.

United States coastal (Florida cited after Hurricane Ian) · agency · agency document

Open coastal waters have satellite chlorophyll limits, mostly 0.2 to 6 ug/L, judged from remote sensing only.

FDEP coastal nutrient regions use chlorophyll a criteria assessed as annual geometric means of satellite data, with narrative criteria for TN and TP. In the app box 28 coastal segments (14 Atlantic, 14 Gulf) carry limits from 0.20 to 5.98 ug/L, median 2.4. Example Atlantic segments: 1.01 and 0.26 ug/L.

Atlantic and Gulf open coast segments (box) · agency · agency document

Biscayne Bay has legal nutrient limits by segment; chlorophyll a above 0.2 to 1.7 ug/L yearly means water is degrading.

Florida rule sets annual geometric mean limits for 9 Biscayne Bay segments, not to be exceeded more than once in 3 years. TP 0.006 to 0.012 mg/L, TN 0.24 to 0.58 mg/L, chlorophyll a 0.2 to 1.7 ug/L. Strictest chlorophyll (0.2) is South Central Mid-Bay and Outer-Bay; loosest (1.7) is Northern North Bay.

Biscayne Bay · agency · agency document

Lee County estuaries use annual-mean chlorophyll limits near 4 to 6.5 ug/L; tidal rivers allow up to about 12.6.

Criteria (annual arithmetic means unless stated): Pine Island Sound chlorophyll 6.5 ug/L, TN 0.57, TP 0.06 mg/L; San Carlos Bay 3.7 ug/L long-term average; Estero Bay 5.9 ug/L; Matlacha Pass 6.1; Charlotte Harbor proper 6.1; Lower, Middle, Upper Caloosahatchee 5.6, 6.5, 4.2 ug/L long-term averages; Tidal Peace River 12.6.

Charlotte Harbor, Pine Island Sound, San Carlos Bay, Estero Bay, Caloosahatchee · agency · agency document

Florida Bay limits vary by basin: open-bay chlorophyll a targets run from 0.4 ug/L (east central) to 2.2 ug/L (central).

Six Florida Bay segments have annual geometric mean limits: TP 0.007 to 0.045 mg/L, TN 0.37 to 1.29 mg/L, chlorophyll a 0.4 to 9.3 ug/L. East Central is strictest (chl 0.4, TP 0.007); Central 2.2 ug/L; Coastal Lakes loosest (9.3 ug/L, TN 1.29).

Florida Bay · agency · agency document

Florida Keys waters are held to very low nutrient limits; yearly chlorophyll a above about 0.3 ug/L breaks most segment limits.

Seven Florida Keys segments carry annual geometric mean limits (exceed no more than once in 3 years): TP 0.007 to 0.011 mg/L, TN 0.17 to 0.25 mg/L, chlorophyll a 0.2 to 0.7 ug/L. Upper Keys is strictest for chlorophyll (0.2); Backshelf loosest (0.7).

Florida Keys · agency · agency document

East coast lagoons have looser limits than Biscayne: chlorophyll a targets 1.8 to 10.2 ug/L by segment.

Lake Worth Lagoon: chlorophyll a 2.9 (north), 10.2 (central), 5.7 (south) ug/L with TN 0.54 to 0.66 mg/L. Loxahatchee: 1.8 (lower) to 5.5 ug/L. St. Lucie Estuary chlorophyll 5.9 ug/L AGM, forks 5.0 to 7.4, TN 0.72 mg/L from the TMDL rule. IRL Hobe Sound reach 2.0 ug/L; St. Lucie to Ft. Pierce 4.7 ug/L.

Lake Worth Lagoon, Loxahatchee, St. Lucie, southern Indian River Lagoon · agency · agency document

SW Florida coastal limits rise from 1.0 ug/L chlorophyll on the outer shelf to about 5 to 6 ug/L in tidal rivers.

Fifteen segments from the Cocohatchee River to Whitewater Bay carry annual geometric mean limits. Chlorophyll a: Outer Gulf Shelf 1.0, Middle 1.4, Inner 1.6, Shark River Mouth 2.2, Collier Inshore 3.1, Naples Bay 4.3, Rookery Bay/Marco 4.9, Inner Waterway 5.2, Tidal Cocohatchee 5.8 ug/L. TN up to 0.82 mg/L (Whitewater Bay).

SW Florida: Naples, Rookery Bay, Ten Thousand Islands, Whitewater Bay, Gulf shelf · agency · agency document

Florida issues a beach advisory when enterococci exceed 70 per 100 mL on a sample and its resample.

Florida Healthy Beaches Program rates marine enterococci per 100 mL: good 0-35, moderate 36-70, poor 71 or more. An advisory is issued when the initial sample and a resample both exceed 70 CFU per 100 mL. Stormwater runoff is listed among fecal sources; sampling is roughly every two weeks.

Florida statewide beaches · agency · agency document